Budget Your Money & Your Time

The year is 2016 and the world is at your fingertips so your extra time should be also.

I remember in grade school learning how to write a letter, address an envelope, put a stamp on it and send it to someone.  Now an email can be sent back and forth, between recipients, multiple times in a day as long as each has internet service.

I remember purchasing a cassette tape and sticking it in the tape deck and listening to my favorite radio channel, pushing the record button and hoping I did not miss the first couple of seconds or have the DJ talk during the end of it.  Now you can find about any song online and either get it free or download it for pennies.

I remember growing up and dial-up was the best form of internet connection.  It would take minutes to download certain websites.  Now kids want their parents to change service providers if the internet is down or their favorite game takes too long to download.

I remember standing in line at a bank when I first joined the workforce.  I had to deposit my check, which was often hand written, and put my name and social security number on the back. Now most companies utilize direct deposit and funds are available at the stroke of midnight on payday.

Recently I started taking a class, sponsored by my employer, discussing proven ways to get out of debt and how to prepare for your financial future.  The reason I mention this is that this course focuses on developing a budget for all the income that comes in to your household.  Each dollar has a place and all remaining money is used to pay off debt.  Once your debt is paid off then the focus is on savings, giving, and living in your means.  Utilizing this method makes sense to me and putting it on paper made me look at finances differently.

When you hear of the word budget, most people think of finances.  What if we took the same approach to time?  In this day and age we have everything at our fingertips to make life easier.  There are certain things that need to happen in order to survive:  working, going to school, taking care of a loved one(s), eating and sleeping.

What if you budgeted for all of these things mentioned and put it into a schedule?

And stuck to it?

What would you do with your extra time?  Similar to the financial budget I would hope you would focus on yourself and your community and find a way to participate.  The next time you budget “YOU” time, search your community and see what peaks your interest.  You may find donating your time is as important as a financial donation.

Charites need money and need volunteers.  Pass the Plate was created to make giving easy, one donation at a time, at the touch of your fingertips.  Use your time wisely and find a way to make a difference.